The present invention is concerned with devices for assisting bedridden or physically challenged people in moving and carrying out the necessary functions of daily living. More specifically, this invention pertains to transfer seats, such as commode seats, that are attached to conventional commodes, bedside commodes, shower chairs, and similar articles in order to allow a person to be easily transferred to such articles from a bed, wheelchair, or other piece of furniture.
People who are temporarily or permanently confined to beds or wheelchairs, or who have difficulty moving about their home or hospital room because of a disabling condition, often employ a portable bedside commode in order to permit bodily waste products to be expelled adjacent to the device or article of furniture upon which they are situated. This arrangement renders unnecessary the movement or transport of a confined patient to a commode in a bathroom, which may be difficult or even impossible in some situations to accomplish.
A conventional bedside commode is manufactured of lightweight tubular material in the form of a chair or seating device in that four leg or supporting members and a seat back are provided. In addition, support members function to bear a receptacle into which bodily wastes are deposited, a U-shaped seat not unlike that of conventional commodes, and a seat lid. The bedside commode is typically situated next to the device (bed or wheelchair) supporting the confined person. When it is necessary to use the commode, the confined person, either aided or unaided, is transferred from the bed or wheelchair to the seat of the commode without incident or difficulty. In certain situations, however, such a transfer can be achieved only with great difficulty because a sizable gap of space exists between the outer edge of the commode seat and the supporting device. In conventional designs, the commode seat is designed only to support a confined person during a seated position on the seat and thus occupies only a limited area in relation to the footprint or outer perimeter of the commode frame. When the frame of the bedside commode comes into contact with the frame of an adjacent bed or wheelchair, such a gap is formed between the commode seat and supporting surface of the bed or wheelchair.
A confined person who lacks the physical strength or agility to sit upright and transfer their body to the bedside commode either by sliding or standing and sitting may incur injury if he or she attempts to accomplish such a transfer over the gap between the supporting device and the bedside commode without the help of a medical assistant. Even if a medical assistant is available, such a transfer would be precarious if the confined person or patient is unusually heavy or bulky or if they are physically fragile, in which cases being lifted over the gap would be exceedingly difficult or pose the risk of injury.
Numerous designs for patient assistance devices have been provided in the prior art. Even though these designs may be suitable for the specific individual purposes to which they address, they are not suitable for the purposes of the present invention. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 4,719,655, Invalid Transfer Device, issued to Dean on Jan. 19, 1988, and U.S. Pat. No. 5,526,541, Patient Transfer Stand, issued to Massey et al. on Jun. 18, 1996, disclose devices that are designed primarily to lift or transfer invalids from a first supporting apparatus, such as a wheelchair, bed, commode, or sofa, to a second supporting apparatus.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,687,431, Toilet Transfer Device, issued to Garrett on Nov. 18, 1997, describes a toilet transfer bench designed for use with toilets in handicap stalls in order to facilitate the use of such toilets by persons in wheelchairs.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,373,591, Shower-Commode Chair and Transfer Track, issued to Myers on Dec. 20, 1994, and U.S. Pat. No. 5,822,809, Transfer Seat Apparatus, issued to Gallo on Oct. 20, 1998, illustrate devices that allow a confined or physically person to be transported to and positioned over a bathtub or commode without requiring the person to be lifted from a seat member of such designs.
As illustrated by the background art, efforts are continuously being made in an attempt to develop devices for assisting in the transfer of confined or physically challenged from a first location to a second location. No prior effort, however, provides the benefits attendant with the present invention.
As such, it may be appreciated that there is a continuing need for a new and improved bedside commode seat that is configured to eliminate the gap that extends between a conventional bedside commode and the bed or wheelchair from which the user must transfer to use the commode. In these respects, the present version of the invention substantially departs from the conventional concepts and designs of the prior art, and in so doing provides an apparatus that substantially fulfills this need. Additionally, the devices described in the prior patents and commercial techniques do not suggest the present inventive combination of component elements arranged and configured as disclosed herein.
Persons with disabilities also use other specialized support devices to assist them in the tasks of everyday living, including shower chairs and geri-chairs. Again, there is a lack of suitable devices available to provide for a safe and stable transfer of such persons from a bed or wheelchair to such specialized devices.
What is needed, then, to overcome the disadvantages of conventional bedside commodes and other specialized seating devices used by persons with disabilities, including the relatively limited supporting surface area of commode seats, is the provision of an extended commode seat that possesses side edges that project substantially beyond the footprint or perimeter of the commode frame in order to furnish a continuous supporting surface from the device or apparatus upon which the situated to bedside person is confined or commode. Such an extended seat would be adaptable to function with a variety of beside commodes and even with standard bathroom commodes, shower chairs, geri-chairs and the like.
Preferably, the improved commode seat would achieve its intended purposes, objects, and advantages with the use of a minimum number of functioning parts, at a reasonable cost to manufacture, and by employing only readily available materials.
The present invention overcomes the deficiencies associated with prior art bedside commode seats by providing an extended transfer platform that eliminates the inconvenient and dangerous gap that exists when the user is attempting to move from a bed or wheelchair to the commode. Described briefly, according to a typical embodiment, the invention presents an extended commode seat that consists of a flat, rectangular elongate member that is comprised of top and bottom sides, lateral sides extending from the seating portion of the seat to form an extended transfer platform, and front and rear side edges. The rear side edge of the seat is fitted with fasteners that allow the seat to be attached to the frame of a bedside commode seat in pivoting engagement. An aperture formed within the central seating portion of the seat is aligned over a commode receptacle when the seat is attached to the commode. The front side edge of the seat is partially formed with a lip that extends from the side edge for some distance, and the side edges are chamfered on the top side. The seat can be manufactured of a variety of lightweight, durable materials, such as wood, plastic, fiberglass, and the like.
When the seat is attached to a bedside commode, the seat can be adjusted to a lower, seating position at which the lower side of the extended transfer platform makes contact with the supporting frame of a bedside commode, and the aperture is aligned directly over the commode receptacle. The lateral sides of extend for some distance beyond the footprint or perimeter of the commode frame, thereby by providing a continuous extended transfer platform upon which a patient or confined person can traverse once the commode seat is positioned next to a support surface of a bed, wheelchair, etc. The seat can be raised upright upon the fasteners to allow access to the commode receptacle for cleaning and replacement.
In other embodiments of the invention, the seat with extended transfer platform is attached to a shower chair, geri-chair, rehab commode, conventional commode, or other support device used by a person needing assistance and support when transferring from an adjacent position.
The foregoing has outlined rather broadly some of the important features of the present invention in order that the detailed description of the invention that follows may be better understood so that the that present contribution to the art can be more fully appreciated. Additional features of the invention will be described below. It should be appreciated by those skilled in the art that the conception and the disclosed specific methods and structures may be readily utilized as a basis for modifying or designing other structures for carrying out the same purposes of the present invention, without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention.
In this respect, before explaining at least one embodiment of the invention in detail, it is to be understood that the invention is not limited in its application to the details of construction and to the arrangements of the components set forth in the following description or illustrated in the drawings. The invention is capable of other embodiments and of being practiced and carried out in various ways, including with wheel chairs, shower chairs, geri-chairs, rehab commodes, and even conventional commodes.
Accordingly, one object of the invention to provide a low-cost, easy-to-manufacture, and easy to-market commode seat having an extended transfer platform.
A further object of the invention is to provide an easy-to-use and versatile extended transfer seat for commodes, wheel chairs, shower chairs, and the like.
Another object of the invention is to provide an extended commode seat that can be used with conventional bedside commodes and standard bathroom commodes.
Yet another object of the invention is to provide an extended commode seat that is comprised partially of lateral sides that extend beyond the footprint or perimeter of the supporting frame of a conventional bedside commode in order to allow a continuous supporting transfer platform to be achieved once the commode is positioned next to a patient supporting device such as a bed or wheelchair.